MY TEACHER STORY – ELECTIVE MATHS WITHOUT TEARS IN YAA ASANTEWAA GIRLS

Life in Yaa Asantewaa Girls Senior High school was an  emotional roller coaster for me, literally. I was known as the “emotional person” who cried a river on her first day of school. I had a few naughty moments when my friends and I would sneak into the school farm and pluck all the juicy oranges. I also used to take food meant for friends that were often late to the dining hall. But I was mostly known for my tears. Today I, Josephine Adjubi Kwakye, tell “My Teacher Story” of he who dried my tears away.

I always cried when my first elective Mathematics teacher came to class. He was always mad at me for asking so many questions, which I never got answers to. He never considered some of the late bloomers in class. Oh, how I hated his class! I was pretty sure I didn’t hate Math because I enjoyed Ms. Florence Nti’s Core Math class. She made it so much fun to be in her class. Fortunately for me, the mean Elective Math tutor left the school to the U.S.A. His replacement was Mr. John  Akuamoah Boateng Aka ‘Sharp-a-leyyy.’ 

Sharp-a-leyyy was the direct opposite of the other E-maths teacher. He sat to teach, which was unusual, but we all understood him. He made sure step-by-step we all followed and understood everything we did. He was not partial like some of the other teachers. He made sure we ALL understood what we were learning before he would move on. I think more teachers can learn from that.  

He used to say, once you attend his class you had a grade “D”. If you concentrated you had a “C”,  if you paid attention you had a “B” and when you thoroughly paid attention and put in effort an “A” was assured. True to his words, we all did so well in E-maths because of him. 

As a lecturer at the department of Sports and Exercise science, University of Cape Coast, I have learnt to treat all my students as equals and I am aware of different learning capacities, so I take it easy on them as much as I can. Something I learnt from Mr. Akuamoah Boateng. I also learnt to make the classes very interesting and lively as Miss Florence Nti used to do.

Mr Boateng is still at Yaa Asantewaa according to a mate of mine who lives close to the school. He may not be fully aware of his impact, but he did so much to contribute to our grades. Mr. Boateng, if you’re reading this, my words of appreciation to you are: “Mr John Akuamoah Boateng, a.k.a. Sharp-a-leyyy! Thank you so much. You may have forgotten about me, but I can’t forget your impact. I owe my grade in Elective maths, which contributed to my general aggregate, to you. This offered me the opportunity to enter the University to offer the course I did and has brought me this far, Thank you. Also your style of teaching is what I have picked to teach my students. I am grateful.”

Josephine completed Yaa Asantewaa Girls Senior High School in 2004. Did you attend Yaa Asantewaa Girls Senior High School too? Were you a student of Mr John Akuamoah Boateng, aka Sharp-a-leyyy?  What about Ms. Florence Nti? Share your experience about how they impacted your life in the comment section.

Also, don’t hesitate to let us know what you think of  “Sharp-a-leyyy”. Do you have a teacher who motivated you and impacted your life in a way that made you who you are today? Share with us on “My Teacher Story”. Reach out to us on Whatsapp https://wa.link/dzccey 

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